Monday, May 2, 2011

Looks like word is getting out about the pre-dawn class at CrossFit Palo Alto. Even with a handful of regulars missing in action today, 11 of us showed up at the gym before sunrise to get our hustle on. We're blowing up, people! (But not blowing up people. Let's hear it for commas.)

Strength Skill:

Jerks (3 sets of 3, 2 sets of 1)

I jerked my bodyweight today. (At least, it was my bodyweight the last time I checked. I haven't cared enough to step on a scale in a few months. If I've gotten super-chubby recently, thanks for not making fun of me to my face.) My form wasn't too crappy this time -- and I'm sure I could have gone heavier. Next week.

Then: The metcon. Read about it after the jump...

As I do every morning before I leave for the gym, I tried to guess what Tim had planned for us. I figured we wouldn't be doing pull-ups after Friday's WOD -- and probably no barbell movements, either. Something with dumbbells? Maybe. Rowing? Also a possibility. And when was the last time we had to do handstand push-ups?

Sure enough, a half-hour into class, Tim wrote the words "double-unders" on the board.

Metcon:

For time:

50 double-unders

10 -> 1 medicine ball cleans to wall ball shots (20lb ball)

1 -> 10 Games standard push-ups

50 double-unders

Sweet -- a chance to bust out my newly-acquired skillz! I happily whipped out my rope (and got some amused looks from my fellow classmates for busting out my shiny new toy).

The first 50 double-unders flew by in a flash. Yes, I still got tripped up once or twice ('cause that's what happens when you suffer from an utter lack of physical coordination), but it felt good. It felt fast. By the time I hit 50, there was a big grin plastered on my sweaty face.

But then came the meat of this WOD sandwich. And it was not delicious.

The workout called for a medicine ball clean before each wall ball shot -- which sounded a lot easier than it turned out to be.

The first ten cleans/shots weren't bad at all. I was happy that the medicine ball cleans provided a great excuse to allow the ball to drop after each wall ball shot. Turning around, I executed a single push-up, and then went right back to the wall to crank out another nine cleans/shots. Two more push-ups later, I was still feeling decent.

But by the middle of my third set of cleans/shots, I wasn't doing so hot. I was slowing substantially, and my heaving chest was starting to hurt from hyperventilating. Or maybe it was from the push-ups. Or from my heart going into acute distress. (Or maybe I'm exaggerating. But just a little.)

Thankfully, the last few rounds of medicine ball craziness were mercifully brief. And the final 50 double-unders gave me a chance to catch up again. Again, I whipped through 'em quicker than I thought possible -- especially given the burning sensation in both legs.

Result: 11:16 as RXed. Not blazingly fast, but much better than I could have done just a couple of weeks ago. I'll happily take it.